Atkinson Morley, Wimbledon, London, UK

A New Neighbourhood: Integrated within a historic landscape

The Atkinson Morley project involves the redevelopment of the former hospital in Wimbledon in the London Borough of Merton.

The site is located within the Copse Hill Conservation Area and includes the locally listed hospital building set amongst mature trees.

The hospital opened in 1869 as a convalescent hospital and retained this use until WWII, when it became an internationally recognised neuroscience centre. After it was closed in 2003, the building remained vacant until the site was acquired by Berkeley Homes in 2010.

The majority of the hospital site consists of sports fields and open land which are part of the Metropolitan Open Land (MOL) that stretches south-westwards towards Cottenham Park Road. It includes open spaces for sport and recreation, a protected woodland, as well as a north-south footpath linking to the surrounding neighbourhoods.

Project Delivery

– Extensive consultation with local residents and community groups gained widespread support for the new neighbourhood.

– A new neighbourhood of 79 homes, comprising new-build houses and apartments together with the refurbishment and conversion of an existing locally-listed building.

– A masterplan which makes the original hospital building the central focus of the neighbourhood and creates a new entrance courtyard to frame the main frontage to Copse Hill.

– Sensitive conversion of the existing hospital to provide a range of apartments, including duplex homes taking full advantage of the larger windows and the space within the former chapel.

– A range of new build houses and apartments, with a variety of sizes and tenures, focussed around the retained building in a series of character areas.

– Community facilities including a gym, sports pavilion and scout hut to support the uses of the Metropolitan Open Land.

– Development of a strategy for the long-term management of the site’s open spaces through a Community Trust.

Client

Berkeley Homes (Urban Renaissance)

Awards

Housebuilder Awards 2018Best Refurbishment Project

Unanimous approval for redevelopment of Atkinson Morley Hospital

London Borough of Merton